Fuel Management for USPS

To set the stage, we have all time record high unemployment. We have crude oil building every week. OPEC people mad that they are not making money. So in the end what could happen? Who knows?

The U.S. people have gotten very good with their fuel management. It might be due to a change in driving habits from when prices were at record highs or it might be because they have been fired and have no place to go. Data released this morning showed the number of people receiving unemployment benefits has reached an all-time record. The Labor Department reported the number of Americans continuing to claim unemployment insurance for the week ending January 17th was a seasonally adjusted 4.78 million, the highest on record dating back to 1967.

As fuel prices stay the coarse not really going up or down but staying around $40 a barrel for oil. Crude inventories continued their climb last week, rising by a higher-than-expected 6.2 million barrels nationwide, according to government data on Wednesday. This plays back into the hands of good fuel management by the U.S. people and companies or an overall total slow down or stop. I am betting on a little bit of everything.

OPEC Secretary General Abdullah al-Badri, at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, said the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries would not hesitate to act again, if the oil price remained low. OPEC next meets on March 15. They have basically said in past reports that they must get $70 a barrel in order for fuel prices to make them money. Is that true? I don’t know. I always found crude oil cheap compared to other items that we buy.

Now today the postal service says it delivered 4.5% less mail during the 12 months ended Sept. 30, a decline of more than 9 billion pieces, Bloomberg reported. That drop combined with high fuel prices added up to a loss of $2.8 billion, greater than expected. This is a prefect demonstration on why a department as big as this should be run by a private company. It’s true that the USPS is not run by the government but certainly the government has its hands all around this program. The Sokolis has talked and met with the United States Postal Service about their fuel management and fuel buying practices. People within the organization know they could buy better if it wasn’t for the bureaucracy.

The other question you have to ask the USPS is, have they ever heard of email? Paying bills on-line? Direct deposit, facebook. All of these areas that would reduce the amount of mail that flows through the postal system. They should be prepared for part of that, plus you throw in a slower economy and there you have a $2.8 billion dollar loss. Should they cut back to 5 days a week and no Saturday delivery? Sure, if you’re in business to make money or at least not to loose $2.8 billion dollars, you have to make changes.

Will any of us really miss the mail on Saturday?

To help reduce your fuel prices and provide your fuel savings, reach out to the Sokolis for your Fuel Management and Fuel Consulting needs at (267) 482-6155.